Overtown’s fortunes are on the rise regarding the hundreds of construction jobs and long-term jobs a twin-project next to Lyric Theater is expected to bring. According to South Florida Business Journal, two blocks are to be developed, one by R. Donahue Peebles and Barron Channer of The Peebles Corporation and one by passenger rail company All Aboard Florida. Developers of the project won the Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency’s approval for changes that would increase payments to both the city and Miami-Dade County.

$10.5 million will go to a community-oriented fund that local government officials will control. The fund will be supported in equal matter by the companies and could be invested later to establish even more workplaces. These payments are inherent in a deal approved by Miami-Dade County Commission, which allows CRA and the developers to negotiate. They are required to come to a final agreement in 90 days.

The Peebles/Channer partnership proposed a Luis Revuelta-designed, silver LEED-certified complex that would be called Overtown Gateway, featuring a hotel, residential space with 60 additional affordable housing units, retail surfaces and parking. All Aboard Florida plans to add a Grand Central-like station including All Aboard Florida headquarters and possibly other commercial spaces as well. The Peebles/Barron Channer group will build on the parcel closest to the theater and All Aboard Florida will take the one to the east near the rails.

The neighborhood is in desperate need of a boost, as its residents earn some of the lowest salaries in the county. As reported by Curbed Miami, the companies behind the projects will invest a total of $200 million on the multipurpose development and delivery should be expected three years from groundbreaking.